Birthday Endeavors
by ninjadevil2000
Summary: Hugo and Harry are on a mission. It's Ron thirtieth birthday and they need to come up with the perfect present. When they figure out what to get him, however, will it be achievable?


**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters. They belong to JKR. I'm merely playing with them.**

**Author's Note: Just a fun fic showing the bond and closeness between Harry and his nephew Hugo. I've had this headcanon that they would be really fun together and play pranks and joke around. And since I got a new computer I was able to get the horizontal line to work finally. YAY!**

**Written for IWSC Summer Camp:**

**Week 7: Pottery: Write about the next-gen making something handmade for their parents, grandparents, etc. for birthday, anniversary, etc.**

**Word count: 2649**

**Beta read by my best friend, the lovely Liz Jean Tonks! Any remaining mistakes you notice are mine and mine alone. :)**

* * *

"Mum?" Hugo said, running over to his mother one afternoon. "Do you have any ideas about what I can get Daddy for his birthday?"

Hermione looked up from some papers, looking thoughtful. "Well, I can't think of anything at the moment, sweetheart. But I'll let you know if I come up with something," she said with a smile.

Hugo frowned, but then brightened as he thought of something. "Can I go see Uncle Harry? I need to talk to him."

"We can see if he's home," Hermione replied, standing up. They walked over to the fireplace.

A minute later, a rush of emerald flames was engulfing them before quickly fading and allowing them to step out into Potter Manor, the beautiful redesigned home that sat in Godric's Hollow. The one James and Lily Potter had first lived in.

"Uncle Harry?" Hugo called. "Aunt Ginny?"

"Up here, Hugo!" Harry shouted from somewhere upstairs.

"Coming!" Hugo shouted back. "Bye, Mum!" he called over his shoulder.

"Bye, sweetheart!" Hermione shouted back, laughing lightly at her son before flooing back home.

Hugo bolted up the stairs to his uncle. "Uncle Harry! Where are you?"

"I'm in here, Hu!" came his uncle's voice from the office. Hugo ran to the room, leaping into his uncle's arms.

"Hey, buddy!" Harry said with a laugh. "How's my favorite nephew?"

"I need your help," Hugo said, suddenly serious.

"Alright, what can I help you with?" Harry said, sitting back down in his chair and looking at Hugo.

"It's about my dad's birthday," Hugo said. "I don't know what to get him and I was hoping you could maybe help me."

"Hmm," Harry murmured, looking at Hugo. "You know, I've been having trouble with that myself."

Hugo looked disappointed.

"I'm sure we can come up with something fantastic though," Harry said quickly.

Hugo nodded. They were silent for a minute before Harry said, "Come on, let's go downstairs. Grandmum left some biscuits here for us last night and she only told me," he finished in a whisper.

Hugo smiled, bounding behind his uncle as they went downstairs to the kitchen. Harry grabbed a jar off the top of the counter and took the lid off, pulling out a handful of biscuits for the each of them.

"Where is everybody?" Hugo asked, noticing that his aunt and cousins weren't there.

"Ginny and Lily went over to give some company to Fleur and Dom and Louis," Harry replied, "and James and Al are over at the shop with Fred and Roxanne."

Hugo nodded.

They ate their biscuits in silence for a few minutes before Hugo asked, "Uncle Harry, tell me a story about being friends with my dad."

Harry grinned and began a story, telling about how he had met Ron on the platform, then shared a compartment with him. As he reached the part about how he and Ron ordered the lot of candy from the Trolley Witch, Hugo's eyes lit up.

Harry then talked about how Ron introduced him to the different Wizarding candies, in particular, Chocolate Frogs and how you could collect the cards.

" – and then he told me about how he had every single card except Agrippa and –"

But Hugo suddenly interrupted. "Ptolemy! Uncle Harry! That's what we could get my dad for his birthday! Let's find him the Agrippa and Ptolemy cards! He still doesn't have them; he told me that a few weeks ago!"

Harry grinned widely. "That's a fantastic idea, Hugo!" he said. "But how should we go about doing that? Just buy a lot of Chocolate Frogs?"

"Why not?" Hugo said, jumping off his stool. "It would be super fun!"

"Alright!" Harry said. "Tell you what, I'm meeting Hagrid in Hogsmeade tomorrow. Why don't you come with me, and then afterwards we can go to Honeydukes and get some Chocolate Frogs?"

Hugo nodded eagerly. "Do you think we could maybe keep this between ourselves, Uncle Harry? Only, Mum isn't great at keeping secrets, and I don't want anyone telling Dad."

"You bet," Harry replied, his smile just as wide as his nephew's.

* * *

The next day, Hugo bid goodbye to Hermione at the edge of Harry's fireplace and bolted into the kitchen where his uncle stood ready. After apparating to Hogsmeade and enjoying a lunch with Hagrid, they headed over to Honeydukes.

"How many do you think we should get, Uncle Harry?" Hugo asked as he looked over the pile of Chocolate Frogs.

"Well, why don't we start out with about twenty and then we can come back if we need more?" Harry replied.

Hugo nodded then bounded up to the witch at the front counter. "Can we get twenty Chocolate Frogs, please?"

The witch smiled at him then followed him back to the display and Harry. "Oh, Mr. Potter, sir," she said as she saw him. "It's an honor to have you here, sir."

Harry smiled rather embarrassedly. The special treatment he still received after nearly twelve years was growing quite stale. "Don't mention it. I've been coming to this shop since I was thirteen years old and I don't want to go anywhere else."

The witch smiled.

"Now, though, me and my nephew need twenty – actually, better make it thirty – Chocolate Frogs," Harry said.

The witch nodded before withdrawing her wand and levitating thirty Chocolate Frogs over to the counter. "That will be nineteen Galleons and four Knuts."

Harry nodded, pulling out the correct amounts and sliding it across the counter. "Thanks a lot," Harry said with a polite nod. "C'mon, Hugo!" he called to the boy was already busy tearing open one of the Chocolate Frogs.

* * *

"Another one of Gryffindor," Hugo said about an hour later, opening another Frog on the sofa in Grimmauld Place. Usually, the building was only used for large gatherings such as Ron's upcoming birthday celebration, so for now it was nice and empty; Harry even had a small stereo nearby, playing Hugo's favorite music (music Hermione would never let him listen to if she knew.)

"Another one of Mad-Eye," Harry said.

Hugo yawned, stretching back on the sofa as he opened the last of their Chocolate Frog haul. "C'mon, please be Agrippa or Ptolemy!" he chanted quietly.

Opening it slowly, he peeked at the card then groaned. "Ugh! One of Mum. I'm so tired of getting these; I have so many of Mum and Dad and you."

Harry put a hand to his heart in mock offense.

Hugo rolled his eyes. "You know what I mean. I think you guys must just be the most popular so I get them all the time." He groaned again. "Why! Why do Agrippa and Ptolemy have to be so hard to find?"

Harry shook his head as he looked at his nephew. "I don't know, Hu," he said. "Well, are you still committed to this endeavor?"

Hugo nodded. "This is the best idea we've ever had. Not to mention, I don't think I could come up with anything near as cool."

Harry laughed. "Alright, same." He glanced at his watch, the one from Molly and Arthur that he still wore. "Well, it's getting late so why don't I take you back home and then pick you up again tomorrow. We'll go get more Frogs."

Hugo nodded. "But wait, don't you have work, Uncle Harry?" he said, standing up.

Harry shrugged, standing up as well. "I'm the head Auror; I can do whatever I want," he joked with a grin.

* * *

The next day, Harry and Hugo went to Honeydukes again, buying another thirty Chocolate Frogs. Both, however, didn't feel the greatest after eating all the chocolate from yesterday, so, instead, they opened the boxes, checked the card, then wrapped them up again, throwing them in a box that they would later drop off at George's shop.

It went on like this for three days. Harry and Hugo went to Honeydukes and would buy armfuls of Chocolate Frogs, but by this time, Hugo was getting tired and he started to wonder whether it was worth the effort.

But finally, on the fourth day of sitting in Grimmauld Place, Hugo opened a Frog. "Harry! Harry!" he shouted, jumping up and down.

Harry looked up. "You got one?"

"Ptolemy!" Hugo shouted. "I've got him, Harry! I've got him!"

"That's awesome, Hugo!" Harry said, ruffling his nephew's hair.

Now, with renewed hope, Harry and Hugo eagerly continued opening the Frogs and were happily surprised that, by the end of the day, Harry had found Agrippa.

Once they had both, Hugo jumped off the couch and started bounding around the living room; Harry couldn't help but jump up with his nephew and swing him around in a hug. "Fifty Chocolate Frogs and sixty Galleons later, we finally found them."

As Harry sat Hugo down, Hugo looked at him apologetically. "I'm sorry you had to spend all that money, Uncle Harry," he said. "I'll pay you back as I get my allowance from Mum."

"No, you won't, Hu," Harry said. "It was totally worth it."

Hugo smiled.

"Alright, buddy, now what?"

"Well," Hugo paused, but then looked up as a thought struck him. "What if we framed them? Like pictures? Daddy's been looking for them for so long he'd want them to be safe."

"That's a great idea, Hugo," Harry said.

And so, the next thing they knew, Hugo sat at the table, using Muggle markers to design pictures as Harry sat next to him.

Harry, who finally admitted that he had some paperwork to do, had flooed to his office and grabbed it before bringing it back to Grimmauld Place. And so, as Hugo designed the frames with pieces of cardboard and decorative paper and glitter and decoration, Harry did some paperwork, once again playing the music Hermione would disapprove of.

"What do you think, Uncle Harry?" Hugo said after a bit of silence between the two. Harry looked up. Hugo had finished one of the frames and held it out for him to see. It was cardboard, although Harry had charmed it blue for Hugo, and was covered in small beads. A pattern of beads at the top read, _Agrippa_, and framed inside between two pieces of glass Hugo had found and Harry had cut, was the Agrippa Chocolate Frog card.

"It looks fantastic, Hugo," Harry said, ruffling his nephew's hair again. "Ron will love it."

Hugo beamed. Over the next hour, Hugo put the finishing touches on the Agrippa frame and completed the Ptolemy one as well before wrapping them up in some paper Harry had found for him.

Knowing it was nearing dinnertime, however, Harry took Hugo home, promising to keep the cards at Grimmauld Place where they would be safe and kept as a surprise. Harry waved hello to Ron and Hermione and Rose as he dropped Hugo off, then flooed back to his own home.

As Hugo sat at dinner later that night with his parents and sister, they kept throwing him curious looks, wondering what on earth he was doing with his uncle Harry that could be so private. Hugo smiled into his food. _"They'll never know,"_ he thought.

* * *

And so, as Ron's birthday finally rolled around, Hugo was very pleased to know that nobody except himself and his uncle Harry knew about the present.

Grimmauld Place was decorated at its finest. Streamers and banners hung everywhere and Molly Weasley had created a beautiful cake with decorations such as Quidditch hoops, a model of a Keeper, and an Auror badge.

It seemed that everyone was there. Kingsley Shacklebolt, Andromeda Tonks, and all the Weasleys of course. Harry's and Ron's dormmates, Neville Longbottom, Seamus Finnigan, and Dean Thomas were there also; Hannah Abbott was there with Neville, having been married for a few years now. And Dean and Seamus quietly told Harry, Ron, and Neville about their engagement which was congratulated upon. Harry had had an inkling that those two friends of his were close in a way other than friendship, and he was pleased to see that they had discovered it as well.

Many others were at the party as well; Luna was of course there with her husband, Rolf, and their twin boys; Lorcan and Lysander; the Patil twins and Lavender Brown were there with their respective partners. Hagrid and Pumpkin, Hagrid's new boarhound, bounded in. Even Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick showed up for a while.

For the first few hours, many people came and went, wishing Ron a happy birthday, maybe dropping off a gift, then mingling for a while with the other guests before returning home.

At last, after probably three or four hours of talk and drink and food, everyone but the family had left. Now, only the extended Weasley clan remained, looking slightly worn by the night's events, but eyes still bright.

"How's Victoire been?" Harry asked Fleur at one point as they sat together on the couch, little Louis and Lily sitting between them.

"Oh," Fleur said, looking proud. "She loves it. She said in her last letter that she wished at first she hadn't been in Gryffindor, but she said it feels like home now."

"And how's Teddy?" she asked. "Has he been enjoying his second year at Hogwarts?"

"Yes, he said he's enjoying it more than his first year," Harry began, but a small frown began to grace his face. "Although, he said that a couple of Gryffindors boys had bullied him about not having any parents, but he said –" Harry hesitated.

"What?" Fleur prompted.

"Well, he said Victorie put them in their place."

Fleur laughed. "Yes, that sounds like my Victoire."

"Uncle Harry!" shouted a voice. Harry looked around. "Uncle Harry!" It was Hugo. "Daddy's opening his presents! C'mon!" Hugo grabbed his uncle's hand and pulled him into the kitchen where Ron sat, surrounded by packages big and small.

Ron was in the midst of tearing open a package from Rose. He smiled as he opened it. It was a new sheath for his wand, perfect to replace the broken down one he'd been using on Auror missions.

"Thank you, sweetheart!" he said, hugging Rose. "I love it."

"I figured you could use it when hunting down the bad guys," Rose said. Everyone chuckled. Next came James, Albus, Fred, and Roxanne bearing a huge box. Ron grinned as he tore away the paper, revealing a huge box of assorted Honeydukes candy. "Aw, thanks so much guys!" Ron exclaimed. He pulled his nephews and niece into a bear hug. After releasing them and popping a Chocoball in his mouth, he looked around. "What's next?" he asked.

"This is from me and Uncle Harry, Dad," Hugo said, pushing the box into his father's hands.

"Well," Harry interjected. "My name may be on the box but it was all Hugo's idea and effort."

Ron smiled at his son as he tore open the paper; Harry and Hugo exchanged grins.

"Oh, Hugo," Ron cried as he opened the package. "Thank you so much, buddy!" he exclaimed, pulling his son into a tremendous hug.

"I know how long you've wanted them," Hugo said, smiling widely at how pleased his dad was with the gift he had worked so hard on.

Ron pulled the two frames out of the box; marveling at them. "I've been trying to find these ever since I was your age!" Hugo beamed. "And you decorated the frames so well!"

"I made them!" Hugo said excitedly. "Uncle Harry found me some cardboard and charmed it blue and then I decorated and glued it together," he said.

"Aw, thank you, buddy," Ron said. "I love it."

Hugo continued to beam as he through his arms around his dad's neck. Harry beamed as well, watching his nephew and best friend like this filled him with such happiness.


End file.
